Week 14 - Year Two This week we are going to be looking at an RE lesson on Monday and a Computing lesson on Wednesday. RE – To recognise that sacred texts contain stories which are special to many people and should be treated with respect. Computing – To research music from places around the world. Monday – RE To recognise that sacred texts contain stories which are special to many people and should be treated with respect. We are going to look at the holy books of a few different religions: Christianity – The Bible The Jewish religion – The Torah Islam – The Q’ran Sikhism – The Guru Granth Sahib Christianity – The Bible The Bible is the sacred / holy book which forms the basis of Christianity. The Bible is divided into two parts: - The Old Testament is about God and how God wants people to live their lives. - The New Testament is about Jesus and his followers who tried to tell people about God and how God wanted people to live. There are many stories in the Bible which has a lot of themes from which we could learn how to live good lives, e.g. obedience, forgiveness, jealousy, and helping others. Taking Care of and showing respect for your Bible 1.Have a Bible cover to protect your Bible when you are not using it. 2.Use a bookmark to mark off where you stopped reading. 3.Avoid studying / reading your Bible while eating food or drinking. 4.Keep your Bible in a safe place. The Jewish religion – The Torah The Torah, the Jewish holy text, is a scroll, kept in a synagogue. Jewish people do not touch The Torah with their fingers. They always use a Yad to touch it. A Yad is often made of silver and is used to point out the words on the Sefer Torah as they are read out. This is a symbol of their respect for The Torah. They believe that The Torah is God’s way of communicating with them and that it is His most precious gift to them. The Torah contains stories and rules for living and the Jewish people use this as a guide for how they should live their lives. Taking care of and showing respect for The Torah 1. The Torah is kept behind the doors of a holy ark right at the front in the synagogue. 2. When the Torah is removed from the ark, everyone has to stand and prayers are said silently as it passes each person. 3. The Torah must never touch the ground. 4. When not in use, The Torah remains wrapped in it own fine covering called a ‘gelilah’ and is often topped with one or two ornate crowns and a shield. 5. When the Torah is being read, either silently or aloud, it must only be touched with a Yad (pointer) to follow the lines from right to left. Islam – The Qur’an The Qur’an is a guide to help Muslims live their lives. Some of their beliefs are: to worship none but Allah; treat with kindness your parents, others, orphans and those in need; speak fairly to people; be steadfast in prayer; and practice regular charity. They believe that The Qur’an is the word of God and that it guides Muslims in their daily lives. Taking care of and showing respect for The Qur’an 1. The Qur’an has a stand and should never be put on the floor. 2. It is wrapped in a silk cloth so that it doesn’t get dirty. 3. Before handling The Qur’an, you must wash your hands. 4. When it is put away, it is kept on a high shelf above all other books. 5. Muslims try to do what the Qur’an says and they often learn the whole Qur’an off by heart. Sikhism – The Guru Granth Sahib Sikhs believe the word of God is contained in the Guru Granth Sahib therefore it is treated with respect. In the gurdwara , the Guru Granth Sahib is placed on a raised throne and Sikhs sit below it to symbolise their respect and obedience. The key messages of the Guru Granth Sahib are: •Everyone in the world is equal. •Sikhs should live and speak truthfully. •Sikhs must avoid the five vices, which are anger, greed, lust, pride and attachment to material possessions. •Sikhs should practise the virtues, which are truth and truthful living, compassion and patience, love, humility and self-control, contentment, and wisdom and courage. Taking care of and showing respect for the Guru Granth Sahib 1. Sikhs wear head coverings in the Gurdwara in the presence of the Guru Granth Sahib. 2. They remove their shoes and wash their hands before entering the gurdwara. 3. The Guru Granth Sahib is placed on a raised platform (takht) which is under a manji. 4. The people sit on the floor to ensure that their heads are not higher than The Guru Granth Sahib. 5. Offerings are made to the Guru Granth Sahib when Sikhs enter the gurdwara. 6. Sikhs never turn their backs on the Guru Granth Sahib. 7. When it is being read a special fan (made from yak hair) is waved above it. 8. It is placed in a separate room at night and ‘put to bed’. Whenever you are writing remember to refer back to this checklist. Always challenge yourself to use as many of the year 2 skills as you can. Main Activity. Why should sacred / holy books be treated with respect? Can you remember any stories you have learnt about from any of these sacred books? What did you learn from those stories? What is the same and different about the sacred books we have learned about? Write what you have learnt about the sacred books we looked at today and explain how you know each group of people treat their holy book with respect. Use the questions above to help you with your writing. Remember to use your Year 2 skills – you can check these on the previous page. Challenge: Can you think about a story from each of these holy books and think about what you learnt from each one? Does it show you what the holy books are teaching us? Wednesday – Computing To research music from places around the world. On the next few pages you will have some information about music from a few places around the world. You may use this information but also try to challenge yourself to do some research of your own, maybe about a different place of your choice or to find out extra information that may have been missed here. Music from Africa African music is used for social and ceremonial purposes. Religious songs are performed at rituals. Work songs accompany such activities as hoeing and threshing. Traditional music has its roots in mythology, legends, and folktales. It is sometimes linked to gods, ancestors, or heroes. People also make music for fun or to relax. Some kinds of music are made especially for dancing. One example is the boeremusiek (“Boer music”) of South Africa. This type of folk music was created by the Voortrekkers who were descendants of Dutch settlers in the area. Their music used the concertina, which is similar to the accordion. Dancing to different kinds of popular music has become a favourite form of recreation in African cities and towns. In the 1960s, African musicians began to use instruments such as electric guitars, saxophones, and drum kits. The best-known popular music styles include West African highlife and juju, Congolese dance music, and East African tarabu. Southern African styles include chimurenga and jit. Drums play an important role in every aspect of African life, including the physical, emotional and spiritual. African hand drums are played to communicate, celebrate, mourn and inspire. They're played in times of peace and war, planting and harvesting, birth and death. African Musical Instruments A wide variety of musical instruments are used in Africa. They include percussion instruments, stringed instruments, and wind instruments. Percussion instruments are sounded by striking, shaking, scraping, plucking, or rubbing. They include drums (such as the djembe), rattles, bells, clappers, cymbals, and xylophones. The marimba is a type of xylophone that originated in Africa. The lamellaphone is a percussion instrument that is unique to Africa. It consists of strips of metal or bamboo that are mounted on a board, box, or gourd. The musician holds the instrument in his or her hand or lap and plucks the strips with the fingers or thumbs. Stringed instruments produce sound through the vibration of stretched strings. The most basic form is the musical bow. The musical bow consists of a string made of gut, skin, or rope stretched between the two ends of a flexible stick. Most bows are played by plucking or striking the string with the fingers. Other stringed instruments include different types of lutes, harps, and lyres. The oldest type of lute is the pluriarc of central and south-western Africa. The khalam is similar to a banjo. Harps are played in a number of countries stretching from Uganda to Mauritania. Two examples are the ennanga of Uganda and the ngombi of Gabon. The kora of The Gambia is a harp lute with 21 strings. Lyres are found mostly in Ethiopia and Eritrea. Wind instruments use air to produce sound. In Africa, they are made mainly of animal horns and tusks, shells, wood, reeds, and bamboo. The flute, whistle, trumpet, and clarinet are popular wind instruments. Different Types of music from Africa Afrobeat It is a fusion of traditional Nigerian music and jazz.